Opinion: The #Resistance Wears Lab Coats

Author: Ben Isaacoff

Editors: Irene Park, Ada Hagan, and Scott Barolo

President Donald J. Trump is wildly inconsistent on many issues. Under different circumstances, it might be amusing how often he contradicts himself. But one issue he has unfortunately been very consistent about is a dismissal of science and outright attacks on the scientific enterprise. The Trump campaign, his transition and appointees, and now his nascent administration, have deeply scared many of us who care about science.

Not only is the administration denying scientific facts, it has insinuated that objective facts and research are not necessary. Counselor to the President, Kellyanne Conway, famously used the phrase “alternative facts” to defend a lie (about a measurement) from press secretary Sean Spicer. Mick Mulvaney, the director of the White House’s Office of Management and Budget, publicly wrote: “… what might be the best question: do we really need government funded research at all?” This alarming sentiment is reflected in the White House’s budget proposal, which calls for massive cuts to research funding likely to cause “a seismic disruption in medical and science research.”

In addition, the pending travel ban on several Muslim-majority countries will be especially harmful to science in the U.S. The research enterprise in the U.S. relies on a diverse workforce with many immigrants and increasingly on international connections and collaborations. The travel ban, which is currently blocked by orders from two federal judges, will disrupt this system.

Sadly, this long list of outrages is only a drop in the bucket of what we can accurately call Trump’s war on science.

In the scientific community, there is a “widespread and long-held view among many researchers that they should be quiet and let their data speak for itself”: a view that science is and should be apolitical. Some even argue that the political engagement “will only cement the divide” between scientists and critics.

I’m not suggesting that scientists have nothing to lose by being politically active, but instead, I’d rather ask my fellow scientists: why are you a scientist, and does being politically engaged support those reasons? My own answer is twofold. Firstly, I became a scientist because I wanted to make the world a better place, being politically engaged absolutely supports that. Secondly, I chose my scientific path from a deep yearning to understand the nature of the universe. By resisting an administration that disregards and discredits that understanding, I defend my ability, and that of my colleagues, to continue conducting scientific research.

#Resistance on Social Media

Although the Resistance movement is multifaceted and is not just from the scientific community, in this blog post I’d like to focus on scientists’ engagement on social media, the main space where scientists are mobilizing and speaking out.

Social media is a powerful tool for action (though activists should carefully consider their strategies), especially since more and more people are getting news on different social media sites. Social media can function (though it doesn’t always) as a tool for amplifying important signals above the background noise—helping citizens focus on certain issues. For example, the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge was a social media movement that raised $115 million for ALS research. When the movement went viral in the summer of 2014 (approximately 2.4 million Ice Bucket Challenge videos were shared on Facebook), the ALS association saw a 146% increase in Twitter followers and an 849% increase in Facebook likes.

Similarly, in my view, the most important function of social media for political action is highlighting new opportunities to act. The massively successful Women’s March initially was organized on Facebook. Likewise, scientists have come together through social media to organize the next massive protest against the Trump administration. The March for Science has been controversial, but it is gaining momentum: the “March for Science” Facebook page has almost 850,000 members. Whether the actual turnout is a thousand or a million, it is a testament the power of the #Resistance on social media.

Perhaps even more important than high-visibility members of the scientific community speaking out is the multitude of ordinary scientists who don’t have such a big group of followers. Together the ordinary scientists possess a huge voice, a huge following, and most importantly a massive capacity to analyze, comment, and act. For those of us not in positions of power, there wasn’t previously a platform for scientists to speak out on politics. Social media is now that platform.

I hope that you choose to join us, by connecting with me and countless others in the #Resistance. I have made it a daily goal to engage and connect with the #Resistance, and every time I do I find new people who inspire me with their thoughtful insights and impressive actions and I’m sure you will as well.

In the words of the March For Science organizers: “Staying silent is a luxury that we can no longer afford. We must stand together and support science…. we must take science out of the labs and journals and share it with the world.”

If you are a scientist, or if you value science, I hope you will speak up and join us in the #Resistance.

About the author

Ben Isaacoff is an Applied Physics PhD student at the University of Michigan. He leads an academic double life, with two deeply intertwined, but traditionally very separate pursuits. On one hand, as a scientist he’s working towards his PhD and producing original research in the field of nanophotonics, which for him basically means shooting lasers at tiny pieces of metal. On the other hand, he’s a student and advocate of Science and Technology Public Policy. When he’s not at his second home, The Chemistry Building, you might find him at the gym or out on one of Ann Arbor’s beautiful running trails. You can connect with Ben on Twitter (@bpisaacoff) or find more information on his website (https://sites.google.com/site/bpisaacoff/).